Hello Friends! 2020 is officially a wrap, and 2021 is about to start in less than 12h here in Germany. Happy New Year! Let’s go ahead and skip discussing how turbulent and challenging 2020 has been, and get straight to the point: goals for 2021. Before I get to the tips and my list, I would like to cover questions from my inner skeptic: “Why to plan in uncertain times?” and “Considering all what has happened in 2020, does it make sense to plan for 2021 at all?”.
Short answer: absolutely. It absolutely makes sense to make plans for 2021. In my opinion, well thought-through goals that follow the S.M.A.R.T. criteria combined with a clear action plan help to bring in structure to our lives. And structure as you can imagine is especially needed in the uncertain times. This is also the main reason I started jotting down my goals in 2015 – I needed something I can lean back on, something that helps to stabilize and keep me grounded.
Another positive factor: if set correctly, goals can also serve as source of motivation. But careful, it works both ways! Set a goal that is “too big” and not achievable, well, then your motivation evaporates within week—if not days. Therefore, I would really like to emphasize how important is to take that time to think through the goals before noting them down.
Some tips to keep in mind before setting your goals:
- Be kind to yourself! If you already have lots of pressure in your life at this moment, don’t make it worse by making your goal list challenging. Focus on improving specific habits or behaviors by 1%, not by 10% or even 20%.
- It is OK not to add any completely new goals to your list, but rather to continue working improving the old ones. Most of my goals are recurring! In my opinion it’s positive because it seems I have picked the goals for my list.
- Feel free to adjust your goals – this doesn’t mean you quit or give up.
- More tips here
- More to S.M.A.R.T goals here
What to consider before setting goals in uncertain times:
- I was careful setting goals related to travels and adventures as well as cultural events such as going concerts and theatres. Basically, I have taken them out or limited to minimum.
- I didn’t set any goals related to volunteering as it also requires human or animal contact and the place where I used to volunteer, has almost impossible rules in 2020 that didn’t fit me at all.
- Another aspect to consider is finances. Lots of people this year have lost their jobs or are on a leave. Even I, who is lucky to still have my full-time job, don’t want to spend my money frivolously, but rather keep it or invest it wisely.
- Social events are also difficult to plan, so I didn’t note any of these here.
So, are you ready to set some goals now? I am! Here you are, my goal list 2021 (I know it seems long, but it’s just very detailed :)):
Career, Finances, Personal Development
- Learn something new (take a course or class related to your career – online based, needless to say :))
- Continue learning about investing and do it on a regular basis (specify the amount of money you want to invest every month)
- Read at least 20 books
- In 2020, I managed to read 16 books; the year before 35. So I think 20 should be doable.
Health, Body, Mind
- Declutter
- Donate whatever you don’t need (this is of course when the donations centers are open again). Not only clothes and shoes, but also books, kitchen appliances, home décor, etc.
- Get rid of all old cables and gadgets that are broken.
- Delete old unnecessary emails and unsubscribe from all irrelevant marketing emails.
- Body cleanse: one month of minimum processed foods, minimum refined sugar and zero alcohol.
- Work out minimum twice a week for 1h (adjusted this goal from three times a week to twice a week due to the fact that all sports clubs are currently closed)
- Handstand and headstand in yoga
- This has been on my list for a while, but it seems I have some psychological issue with being with my head upside down.
- Be able to run 5km
- This was on my list already in 2020, but guess what? The most I was able to run until now was 1km! On some days, my knee will give me troubles out of nowhere (even while walking), so 3km would be already a pretty good distance for me.
- Mediation challenge 42 days
- Become more mindful and practice staying in the moment. Become more calm. Work on it. Review progress quarterly. Learn how to BE.
- New look: whether it is a new style of clothes or a new hairstyle – try something new even if it’s just for fun and even if it turns out not to fit you! Experiment!
- Take off one (or maybe two?) week(s) and try to live without planning and structure (not while traveling, but while I’m in my daily routine)
- This was suggested by two different people who seem to think I plan too much. I am glad to accept this challenge 🙂
We’re halfway through the list now…
Hobbies
- Blog: post minimum once a month
- Learn a new piano piece
- Managed to learn “River Flows in You” in 2020, so I would definitely like to continue this hobby and learn a new piece. Still undecided on the piece itself.
- Travel to one place where you have never been (doesn’t matter how close or how far)
- Visit NYC again
- Some of you may know that I lived in NYC for 8 years, so I consider this more or less my home. I haven’t been back for 2.5 years, and I definitely wish to visit the city and friends again (if the pandemic allows, of course).
- Learn at least three new dishes to cook
- I am cooking (mainly meal prep) on a regular basis, however, I rarely try something new. So, I think it is time to spice things up!
Family, Friends, Romance
- At least one quality-time date in a month with my significant other (and no, Netflix and Chill doesn’t count here).
- Continue nurturing my friendships and relationship with family members
- Here I couldn’t put down anything specific as I am already keeping in touch with everyone on a regular basis and trying to be there whenever somebody needs me, but maybe I will get some cool ideas throughout the year.
That’s all! I hope you enjoyed the read and I wish you all a wonderful new year and stay on track with your goals!
Light & love,
Liis
Great goals for 2021, I hope you will achieve what you have in mind! Can I ask where so you have your list saved or is it on paper? And how often do check it throughout the year?
Thank you and great question! Besides having my list saved to this website (obviously :), I also wrote it down by hand to my 2021 planner. There I have my yearly list broken down into monthly and weekly targets and to be honest, I am reviewing it minimum once a week. The focus is not always on the bigger yearly goals, but rather on the smaller weekly targets that altogether help me to achieve those bigger long-term goals. I hope this helps 🙂
My thoughts on your list (because I find myself way too impulse and conciously unorganized for following any lists of my own. However, I do have a ‘to do’ list on my phone which exsistence I keep forgetting, lol…):
First of all, WOW on the amount of books read, really impressive and inspiring! If I had a list, that goal would be there 🙂 Secondly, based on personal experience, I believe the meditation challenge is the most profound goal in this list that will have the biggest impact and hopefully seamlessly transforms from a challenge into a habit 😉 Body cleanse and yoga is of course a natural addition to that. The handstand seems quite hazardous to be attempted (especially in a rental :D), but headstand safely next to a wall for a few seconds is a great goal!
Lastly, I for one admire your skill to plan and follow up on things, analyze, make conclusions and of course, write it all down beautifully!
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and for your kind words, Elli! Haha, one of the reasons why I started preparing the lists, was my unorganized and restless mind. Without my lists I probably wouldn’t get anything done :D. It seems you are into meditation, so I have good news for you: in a few weeks I will have several posts coming up on that topic! Looking forward to your comments also then!